Stanley Cup Stories: Canadiens get scare with Lars Eller

Montreal forward stretchered off after frightening hit

Lars Eller (81) of the Canadiens is taken off the ice on a stretcher after being hit by Eric Gryba of the Ottawa Senators, not shown, during Game 1 of the Eastern Conference quarter-finals at the Bell Centre on Thursday in Montreal. (Francois Laplante/Getty Images)

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The end result between the Montreal Canadiens and Ottawa Senators was overshadowed by a frightening incident that sent Habs forward Lars Eller off the ice in a stretcher. Elsewhere, the Boston Bruins found out they will be without one of their defencemen for Game 2 against the Toronto Maple Leafs. These are just a couple of the stories that generated headlines Thursday in the Stanley Cup playoffs.

2. Mikhail Grabovski got a measure of revenge Thursday as Andrew Ference was punished for the vicious elbow he threw on the Leafs forward Wednesday night. The Boston Bruins blue-liner was suspended one game by the NHL and will be forced to sit out Game 2 on Saturday night against Toronto (CBC, CBCSports.ca, 7 p.m. ET). But while one Bruins' defenceman will be out, another one is elevating his game. As CBCSports.ca senior hockey writer Tim Wharnsby writes, Wade Redden has been resurgent for Beantown.

4. A wild back-and-forth affair in Anaheim culminated in a 5-4 overtime win by the Red Wings. After carrying a 4-1 lead midway into the third period, Detroit surrendered three unanswered goals to the Ducks and found itself heading to an extra frame. But it didn't take long for the Red Wings to even the series at one game apiece, as Gustav Nyquist played the hero just over a minute in to end the game. In Washington, the Capitals' strong play continued after they came back to beat the New York Rangers 3-1 to draw first blood in their series. Alex Ovechkin passed Peter Bondra for the franchise's all-time playoff goals lead to continue his hot run.